This invention relates to apparatus for removing the sprue from an injection mold, comprising a cylinder and an associated piston rod.
In the previously known apparatus of that kind a gripping implement is mounted on the end of the piston rod. When the mold has been opened the apparatus is actuated so that the gripper grips the now exposed sprue and then deposits said sprue outside the automatic injection molding machine. For this reason the function of the sprue gripper cannot be initiated until the halves of the mold have been sufficiently moved apart. This results in a time delay. Besides, the gripper mechanism is rather complicated and expensive.
The mechanism for pivoting and lifting the gripper is correspondingly large, complicated, and expensive and requires a lot of maintenance work. This is particularly due to the fact that the apparatus is mounted on the stationary bridge or on the stationary platen.
In view of the above it is an object of the invention to provide a sprue ejector which is of the kind described and which is structurally simple and inexpensive and is absolutely reliable in operation and has a function that is integrated in the injecting operation.